5.23.2012

FYM SEATTLE: INSTAGRAM PHOTO OF THE WEEK ° THEY LIVE WE SLEEP ° OBEY PROPAGANDA

Our nephews Kris and Will recently took a trip to Texas for a horror movie convention. They happen to know how much we LOVE John Carpenter's 1988 classic THEY LIVE starring WWF favorite -Rowdy Roddy Piper & Keith David. The boys stood in line for an hour to meet Rowdy Roddy Piper and get FYM this autographed 8x10 of the two cast members. So cheers to them for such a thoughtful gift!

Watch the trailer above, THEY LIVE also happens to be available on Netflix Instant. Receiving this picture reminded us of just how much this film has affected popular culture. 1. As campy as the movie is (example: the 18-minute body-slamming alley-fight), THEY LIVE is a brilliant commentary on the brainwashing of the masses taking place -via corporate media/advertising.

2. Shepard Fairey started his design empire OBEY GIANT during the late 80's, early 90's as a street artist. His Andre The Giant graphic ultimately was paired with the words OBEY resting below. Fairey created a now iconic street-bombing propaganda campaign on the principles THEY LIVE mapped out in the movie. Only instead of needing special sunglasses to see what the media is really telling you, Shepard placed it bluntly in plain site on the streets. The Fairey OBEY campaign name itself is a direct graphical reference to a billboard shown in THEY LIVE.

3. It's an election year again, and Shepard's 2008 PROGRESS, CHANGE, HOPE design campaign (using the same commanding advertising principles found in THEY LIVE) created a public image the people could get behind, ultimately leading Obama into his historic Presidency.

Today on our walk home through Queen Anne, Seattle -FYM noticed a Wrong Way sign with the remnants of a newsprint OBEY GIANT stencil (and a sticker underneath stating capitalism isn't working). This beauty found on the streets is forYoungModern's Instagram Photo of the Week. Cheers, FYM.